The Rugby Emergency Medical Services, a service of the Heart of America Medical Center received a $1000.00 grant from the Enbridge Energy Company as part of their Safe Community Program.

The grant was awarded for the purchase of a King Vision portable video laryngoscope, which allows the REMS paramedics to better place airway breathing tubes in critical medical and trauma patients.

The device allows for quicker visualization and more accurate placement of the breathing tubes, even in cramped spaces and poor lighting. The insertion of a breathing tube can be truly lifesaving in patients with severe breathing problems or unconsciousness.

HAMC Director of EMS Ken Reed said normal laryngoscopes can be difficult to use.

“Usually it’s a manual handle and blade,” he said. “This allows us to insert it in just using gentle manipulation. You can see it on the screen and watch the tube pass through the vocal cords. It improves success rates and allows us faster placement into the airway tube.”

The laryngoscope will be carried in the EMS van on duty, and Reed said it is “small, lightweight and very easy to use.”

Enbridge supports emergency responders in their areas of operations throughout the United States and Canada. The grant check was issued to Reed by Art Haskins, Emergency Response Coordinator for Enbridge.

“We’re grateful to Enbridge for their support,” Reed said. “Our medics need to take care of people. We want to make sure they have the tools to do that.”

– Submitted by HAMC, additional reporting by Chris Bieri